Mount Humphreys and the Regular Route via Piute Pass, September 2012

This was the start of a series of 2 dayhikes that I was to complete over Labor Weekend with a friend; however this one being solo due to the fact that he had to work Saturday, and this dayhike/climb was a little beyond his league of peak ba
gging and endurance at the time. This started out as a 7 ½ mile hike at 3:30am and ended 17hrs later at 8:30pm with about 15 miles of ground covered "Emblem Peak" that I've climbed in the High Sierra, Mount Whitney being the other that I've done—twice. If I could do this climb again, I'd prefer to use a rappel on the 200 ft section of the class 4, and I might just do it and bring a couple friends along.

Around 13,000ft I kept hearing voices. Around 13,200ft as seen here I looked up and saw a pair of climbers descending Mount Humphreys. They had set up a base camp in the Humphreys Basin and got an early start on the peak. They cautioned me about the importance of brining a rope to rappel down the wall. I didn't have one at the time of this climb and really wish I did when it came to down-climbing the class 4 just below the summit. I'd highly recommend a rope to rappel this section for anyone considering to climb Mount Humphreys. Many years ago I heard of a helicopter rescue to capture a group of climbers that couldn't make it down this section of the climb w/o the rope. I will most definitely bring my rope on this climb if I attempt it again.

~13,300ft.

~13,300ft.

~13,300ft.

~13,300ft.

~13,400ft at the Notch looking back down the class 3 and the Humphreys Basin.

~13,400ft at the Notch looking up at the class 4 section that leads you to the summit.

~13,400ft at the Notch looking down the class 4 that takes you down to Longley Lake.

I reach the 13,986ft summit at about 12:45pm--the view overlooking the Humphrey's Basin is impressive to say the least.

I reach the 13,986ft summit at about 12:45pm--the view overlooking the Humphrey's Basin is impressive to say the least.

There's a very beautiful white luminessence comming from the upper Humphreys basin and surrounding area--very beautiful beyond words or even what this picture can depict.

At 1pm, I triumphantly hold the summit canister with the summit log intact atop of Mount Humphreys. This climb has really capitalized on my progress as a climber and conviced me that I need to take the next step to grow as a climber and mountaineer--redundant rope techniques.

A good look down at the class 4 that I came up from the edge of the summit and overlooking the Humphreys Basin.

Pretty much looking straight-down the class 4 section from the summit of Mount Humphreys.

A good look down at the other class 4 climb that comes up to the Notch, but with an added element of snow and ice and an extra 1,300ft worth of climbing. Buttermilk Rd off of 168 E will give one access to Longley Lake as seen down below in this photo. This was taken from the summit of Mount Humphreys.

Looking SW towards Muriel Lake the Goethe Glacier and Lakes from the summit of Mount Humphreys.

Looking SE towards the Palisades with Mount Sill, the North Palisade and Bishop Pass easily identifiable from the summit of Mount Humphreys. Chocolate Peak is the most obvious peak centered in the photo.

Desolation Lake is an enormous Lake in the Humphreys Basin as seen here from the summit of Mount Humphreys. It's the largest solid-body-of-water alpine Lake that I know of in the High Sierras and sets relatively high too--about 11,400ft.

Looking SE from the lower summit of Mount Humphreys.

Looking East from the summit of Mount Humphreys with the city of Bishop in the upper left of the picture.

Looking down on the highest Humphreys Lake and Marmot Lake from the summit of Mount Humphreys.

The true summit of Mount Humphreys with my tripod atop of it as seen from the lower summit to the east of it.